Sabbath 7/18/15 Daytona SDB Church Pastor Wray sermon “Footsteps of Jesus”

Sabbath 7/18/15 Daytona SDB Church Pastor Wray sermon “Footsteps of Jesus” Matt. 23:1-12


God has certain qualities that He wants people in leadership to have. In the text vs 11 and 12, it says the greatest among us shall be our servant. Whosoever exalts himself will be humbled and who humbles himself will be exalted. The Prime Minister of India once gave a speech that was different in many ways. The Prime Minister selected a slogan that “He was present as a servant to the people, as a Prime servant and not a Prime minister”. Leadership should be servants to the people who voted them into their positions. Jesus Christ was the first who said the greatest among us must be a servant. This applies to all leaders at all times.

Our leaders must be self-giving rather than self-seeking. Servant leadership enhances the lives of people and builds a better society and a more caring world. A servant leader focuses on the community and needs of the people in the community. Servant leadership is a philosophy that enriches the lives of people. A servant focuses on the growth and wellbeing of people and their community. Servant leadership shares the power and puts the needs of others first. It is not about position or power. Instead it says people and relationships are more important for the missions and goals we want to accomplish. Jesus Christ set a perfect example thru His life. God wants us to lose our sense of self –centeredness and replace it with an attitude of helping folk and being concerned for others. This attitude will make us be kinder, more compassionate and more thoughtful. We will find that serving others will make us feel good.

True leadership must be for the benefit of the followers and not to enrich the leaders. The leader’s success must be defined by how much the people we influence achieve. It is not about us but what God does through us to help others. The Bible is the best book to go to for learning leadership. Leadership must put the needs of others before their own needs. Jesus was the greatest leader and set a perfect example as a servant leader. His goal was not for fame or popularity. After doing a miracle, He would tell people to not tell what they saw Him do. Jesus was a publicist nightmare! Jesus healed the sick, drove out demons, had power over the wind, waves and even power over death. Jesus had so much power that three generations after He went back to Heaven, the emperor Constantine made Christianity the official religion in Rome, Italy.

Jesus taught three years and His ministry still toes on today. Jesus always led by example in everything He told his disciples to do. In today’s world this is not true. We have bosses that are telling us to do stuff that we know they don’t know how to do themselves. The lessons of leadership we learn from Jesus are in the Bible. These lessons are for us to succeed as leaders. II Timothy says as leaders we are to be brave, disciplined, hardworking, diligent and gentle. We are to live in the “Faith Zone”. We are to put the needs of others first and to be kind and honest to all folk no matter what. The good we do today may be forgotten tomorrow but do good anyway. It is between us and God anyway! PRAISE THE LORD!!!

Amen
 
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